Electric well-boeing tool



H. M. MCFADDEN.

ELECTRIC WELL BORING TOOL.

APPLICATION msn FEB. 5. |920.

1,419,068. PatentedJune 6, 1922.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 1'.

R. M. MCFADDEN.

ELECTRIC WELL BORING TOOL.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 5, 1920.

1,419,063. Patenuune 6,1922..

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

55 Hwy/s R. M. MCFADDEN.

ELECTRIC WELL BORING TOOL.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 5. 1920.

Patented June 6, 1922.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

R. M. MCFADDEN. ELECTRIC WELL BORING TOOL.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 5. |920. l1,419,068.

Patented June 6, 1922.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ROBERT M. MGFADDEN, OF HAVANA, ILLINOIS.

ELECTRIC 1WELL-BOlttIli'Gr TOOL.

To FZ wir 0in, it may concern Be it known that l. Ronnnr M. lVloliliDDnN, a citizen oi? the United bltates, residing at llevainaj in the county of Mason and State oi. illinois. have invented new and usetul iinproveinents in Electric lell-'loring rlools ot which the Vollowing is a sijieciication.

This invention relates to well drilling Iapparatus and has -for its object to provide improvements in well drilling tools of the rotary type and by which improvements the power plant for driving the tools is seltcon- .ained in a unit adapted to be lowered into the well hole and follow directly the cutting tool ttor the purpose ot eliminating expensive` heavy, and unwieldy driving parts handled with diiiiculty as the depth ol" the drilling proceeds7 and the invention consists ot' the construction, the combination and details and arrangements ot parts an embodiment o'ii' which is illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described and claimed herein.

Figure l is a vertical. transverse sectional view of the niotor and locking parts at the upper part ot' the unit.

Fig. 1A is a vertical section taken centrally through the lower part of the unit. A

Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical longitudinal View partly in elevation of the underreainer.

Fig. l is a transverse horizontal section on line of Fig. 1A.

Fig. d is a transverse horizontal section on line L-Ll of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a vertical section through a portion of the underreamer body showing a retained underreaming cutter.

i Fig. 6 is a transverse section on line 6-6 of Fig. l.

Fig. 'i' is a side elevation ot the spider structure at the head oi the unit being at right angles to the plane oit Fig. l.

`Fig. S is a transverse section on line 8 8 ot Fig. 1.

One ot the principal 'features of the present invention resides in the compact organization forming a combined unit with a sell.fn contained power plant and drilling or cutting' means, and in the illustrated embodiment or the invention the unit comprises a casing having a head or cap Ineniber 2 internally threaded as at 3 to beithreaded upon the upper end of a longitudinally split shell Speecaton of Letters Patent.

Patented June 6, 1922.

Serial No. 356,441.

or body i with edges shown in elevational view in Fig. l. The assembled halves of the split shell l may be locked against unthreading by suitable means such as screws 5.

rl'he shell or body 4l.- of the upper portion et the coing may be olf any suitable length7 and in llig. if tle halves ot the shell l are shown as connected against separating by a lock ring 6 having an inner sleeve or bushing-like part 7 titting the complementary bore oit' the lower end oit the casingpart 4L, the ring having also an exterior sleeve part 8 internally threaded to take exterior threads 9 iiornied on the lower ends of the halves 'torrning the split shell l. The ring 6 also 'terms a renewable race or track for internally arranged roller bearings l() a suitable number oit which may be provided on the upper end oit the reainer casing or body il, the upper end oi this body being turned down and oit suilicient size to extend upwardly into the sleeve 'i' and which upwardly extending portion is interinilly threaded as at l2 t0 be threaded on to the reduced and eX- teriorly threaded lower end 13 of an inner gear box or casing 14 which preferably also is .longitudinally split for the purpose of convenient arrangement of the interior parts.

he antitriction rollers l0 are provided at their ends with trunnion pins or stud shafts l0 which respectively extend into bearings provided in one instance7 in the upper end oi the reaiuer casing, as clearly shown in Fig. l, while the other end pins l0 oi? the rollers are mounted in rings l()EL clamped about the upper reduced end of the casing when the latter is screwed into place on the reduced part 13 above described. Y

The parts oi' the inner gear box or casing lll inay be connected by suitable transverse bolts l5 which extend through an inwardly turned 'flange or head 16 on opposite sides or which are provided upper and lower sets ot ball or other antifriction bearings as li' and i8 respectively; these bearings being adapted to taire end thrust ot the operating mechanism to be described hereinafter.

lIhe lower set of bearings 18 run on a diainetiical cheel'ceplate or disc 19 having a hub Q0 which is conically threaded as at 2l to taire the complementary threaded cone or hub 2Q that is inounted'in iixed position inside ot the exteriorand upper casing 4.

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Such connection may be obtained by means of a flange 23 extending diametrically from the upper end of the hub 22, and into the flange there may be threaded fastening screws or other suitable means 24 passed through apertures 25 provided therefor in the casing 4 just above an inwardly extending ydiametrical web 26 fitting an annular space formed between the uppei flange 23 and a lower flange 23 which forms a bearing against the thrust of the upper set of antifriction bearings 17.

`From the above it will be seen that there is provided an exterior aclret or vcasing including the ycap y2 serving to secure the lower longitudinally split casing body 4 which is of suitable length and has its lower end secured in assembled organization by the lock ring f6. ln the upper end of the casing 4 there isprovided a motor plant. in the present instance, comprising aplurality of armatures 27 any suitable number. of which maybe employed to provide the necessary power for driving the drilling tools, these armatures rotating in respective elds 28 within the upper' end of the casing 4, and the armatures are secured on a shaft 29 the upper endof `which runs on end thrust bearings 3() having a racemounted on a bridge or spider 3l extending diametrically or otherwise arranged across the upper end of the casing 4, and below this spider or bearing part there is provided an oiliug cup or device 32. The motor organization is contained internally within the upper casing parts and does not extend through the cap 2.

The motor shaft 29 is provided immediately below the lower armature 27 with a suitable bearing 33 that is supported on a central bearing part 34 formed yon or attached to the casing 4, and at any suitable location in the casing there may be provided an oiling device or means for facilitating vthe introduction of oil as for instance an oil plug 35. Fig.' l.

The motor shaft passing through the bearing 34 extends downwardly through the bearing or central hub 22 above described as held stationary, and on this shaft below the end of the bearing 22 there is provided aipinion engaging and drivinga reducing gear of suitable construction. This gear may comprise one or more intermediate pinions 37 on a respective shaft or shafts 38. The intermediate shaft 38 carries a gear 39 and this meshes with and drives aV larger gear 4.0 secured Vor formed on a reducing shaft 41 whose lower end is mounted in a bearing plate 42 or other suitable device, in this case bolted or otherwise connected` as at 43 in spaced relation lbelowthe upper plate 19. These `plates may be definitely spaced bysuitable` spacing' members 44. The intermediate shaft or shafts 4l is or are provided with 'a lpinion or pinions 45fengaging an internal gear 46 formed on or secured to the inner face of the gear box or chamber 14 so that the latter is rotated with respect to the outer casing 4 when the latter is held stationary as will be described hereinafter.

The motor shaft 29 is shown as extending downwardly and provided with `a suitable flexible joint 292L and has an extension 29 on which may be mounted a centrifugal disc or oil distributor 47 shown as arranged below the `flexible joint 46, and the lower end of the shaft section 2t is mounted in a suitable bearing 48 that is formed or mounted on the interior of the lower reamer casing.

On the lower portion vof the shaft section 29 there is secured a gear 49 engaging with and driving a plurality of pinions 50 that are secured on respective shafts 51 having their upper ends supported in a bearing part 52, in this case, in the form of an internal annular shoulder at the upper portion of the casing ll and which shoulder or bearing is just below the plane of the oil distributing disc 47 so that oil thrown from the latter may tlow through oil holes 53 leading to the journals of the upper ends of the shafts 5l. lhe'lower ends of these shafts, which shafts are shown as converging downwardly, are mounted in bearings 54 in the lower inclosed end of the underreamer casing andthe eX- tcnding ends of the shafts 5l are provided with removable cutters 55 of any suitable character so that these cutters are positively driven through means of the driving shaft 29 29 independently of the rotary movement of the driven under-rearner casing 1l but by which rotary movement of the latter the leading or end cutters 55 are carried in a circular orbit during which time they rotate on their own axes.

To facilitate the lowering of this drilling unit into the well being drilled and for removing the same and for locking the motor casing 4 against rotation, suitable means may be provided a formof which comprises means carried by the-cap or head 2 which is shown as havinga set of upwardly extending legs converging in a central hub 6l to which` is connected ashaclrle 62 attached to which is a lowering` and lifting cable 63. The hub 6l ishollow and through it passes a tripping cable on the lower end of which is mounted a collar 6G. the lower end of the cable beingprovided withv anysuitable shoulder 67 to vhold the collar in place `against slipping down.

This collar is provided with a plurality of pivot vpins 68 oneach of which is arranged an expanding link 69, these links being con nected at their outer and swinging ends by bolts or pivot members70 which pass through respective dogs 7l. The inner ends of these dogs are pivoted on pivot pins 72 passing through suitable bearings 73 preferably of considerable length and formed in pairs spaced to receive and hold the inner ends of the dogs 7l rigidly when they have been eX- panded outwardly to become embedded in the wall of the well hole, as shown in Fig. l. Normally the dogs 7l, which preferably have outeriweighted ends, will swing down freely in their bearings 73 while the tripping or setting cable hangs slack during the lowering of the unit by the main cable 63. As the drilling proceeds the cable 63 is slacked ofi' and the dogs 71 thrown outwardly into engagement with the surface of the well by pulling up on the setting cable 65 which causes the expansion of the links 69 by the upward movement of their carrier 66.

Electric energy is supplied to the motor in the casing 4 through an electric feed cable 74.

ln addition to the end cutters 55 mounted on the rotary casing section 11 the latter may also be providedwith other cutting means such for instance shown in Figs. 2, 4 and 5 inwhich cutters in the form of blocks 75 are arranged in pockets 76 provided at suitable locations in the lower section casing 11, and the cutting blocks or tools are pivoted on pins or other suitable supports 77 extending transversely across the pockets 76, the cutters 75 preferably being overbalanced at their inner ends so that they will swing to a horizontal position as shown in Fig. 2 with their outer and operative ends exposed beyond the surface of the casing section 11 and at which time the outer portion of the upper edge of each cutter is designed to rest against an overhanging stop portion or shoulder 78 at the mouth of the pocket 76.

W hen the tool is iirst lowered into the well these several cutters 75 which are disposed substantially radially with respect to the casing section l'l are disengageably latehed in contracted position, as shown in Fig. 5, by a suitable linger SG that is turnable from the upright position on a pivot or screw 81 countersunk in the face of the casing il at the lower end of the mouth of the pocket 7 6.

As the tool is lowered into the hole being drilled and the section 11 is rotated by the motor, the lingers 8O are tripped or tilted about their pivots 61 by the friction of engagement with the walls of the hole and this automatically releases the lower ends of the cutters 75 which then automatically swing into effective cutting position.

Various changes may be made without departing from the spirit of my invention as claimed.

l claim:

1. A well drilling unit comprising a relatively stationary cylindrical housing, an electric motor arranged for operation within said housing, a drilling head rotatably connected to the housing and motor, a plurality of rotary cutting tools carried by the drilling head and driven from the motor, which unit is adapted to be bodily lowered into and removed from a well.

Q. A well drilling unit comprising a cylindrical housing, an electric motor arranged for operation within said housing, a drilling head rotatably connected to the housing and motor, a plurality of rotary cutting tools carried by the drilling head and driven from the motor, which unit is adapted to be bodily lowered into and removed from a well, means arranged on the housing for engaging the ground adjacent to said housing to retain the latter against rotation, and means for retracting said holding means in order to permit the unit to be removed from the well.

3. In a well boring unit, a substantially cylindrical body, an electric motor arranged for voperation in the upper portion of said body, a revoluble head arranged for operation in the lower portion of said body, reduction driving gear connections between the motor and said revoluble head, a plurality of rotary cutting tools arranged for operation in the head and driven from the electric, motor, and means on the upper portion of the cylindrical body for engaging the earth in which the device is operating to hold the main body portion thereof against rotation.

4. A well drilling unit comprising, in combination, a power plant contained within a casing; means connected to the casing for raising and lowering the same; means adapted to engage the earth to lock the casing against rotation in a well hole during the drilling thereof; means for` disengaging said locking means from the earth in order to permit the unit to be withdrawn from the well; and cutting means connected to and rotatively driven by the said plant.

5. A unit Set for well drilling comprising an upper casing section embodying a power plant; means adapted to engage the earth for locking the casing against rotation in a well hole; means for disengaging said locking means from the earth in order to permit the unit to be withdrawn from the well; a head casing connected on the lower end of the upper casing; said lower casing having cut ting means; and means connecting the lower casing and the power plant whereby the latter is driven directly from the plant.

6. A unit set for well drilling comprising an upper casing section embodying a power plant; means adapted to engage the earth for locking the casing against rotation in a well hole; means for disengaging said locking means from the earth in order to permit the unit to be withdrawn from the well; a head casing connected on the lower end of the upper casing; said lower casing having cutting means; means connecting the lower casing and the power plant whereby the lat ter is driven directly Atroni `the plant; and rotary cutters mounted on rthe lower casing and individually driven independently ot their carrying casing.

7. ln a rotary well drill, a casing having a motor section and a rnotor therein; means carried hy the inotor containing section of the casing tor engaging the earth to lock said section against rotation; and an end section rotatively attached thereto and geared to the motor; said end section having cutter shafts geared to the lnotor.

8. In a rotary well drill, a casing having a motor section and a rnotor therein; means carried byv the inotor' containing section et the casingtor engaging the `earth to loci; said section against rotation; and an end section rotatively .attached thereto and geared to theinotor to be driven `thereby at reduced speed; said end section having cutter shafts geared to the motor.

9. In a rotary well drill7 a casing having a motor section and a ymotor therein; `means carried hy the motor ycontaininv` section ot the casing for engaging :the earth to lock said section against rotation; andan end section `rotatively attached thereto and geared yto the ymotor; said end section having `nanoe to this specification.`

1,419,foe48 cutter shattsgeared to the niotorand driven at an accelerated speed overthe end casing.

l0. rotary drill .apparatus comprising upper and lower aligned casing sections having .swivel `connections so that one may rotate as tothe other, the 'relatively stationary section having an inclosed power plant7 the other section having cutting ineans and inea-ns carried by the non-rotating section for engaging the earth 'to retain the inain body .portion of the apparatus against rotation. y i

ll. A rotary drill apparatus comprising upper and lower aligned casing sections having swivel connections so that one inay rotate as to the other, the relatively stationary section having an inclosed power plant, the other section having cutting means7 said means including :rotary cutters `driven independently `olt the lower casing by the power plant and means carried by :the non-.rotating section lor engaging lthe earth adjacent to which .the apparatus is operated for retaining the main body 4portion ot said apparatus against rotation.

In testimony whereof I have signed my nonrnr M. Mein-lonnit. 

